Jeff Smith was a man of ideas. Unfortunately many of them were bad ones.
At the end of his unpleasant school life Jeff thought the life of a schoolteacher would be the way to go. Teachers had power, great hours, lots of holidays and a pay check every fortnight.
In Jeff’s head the role of a teacher was someone who made life as miserable as possible for his students as his teachers had done to him.
On his first day at Villain Street High School Jeff sauntered in and looked at his timetable before deciding that for each class pretty much the same lesson would suffice.
So his one lesson organised he sat back to await his first pay day planning what he would do with his new found wealth.
Now Jeff was a big man with a big voice. Any dissent he decided could be met with sheer will power and vocal strength.
After the first week the kids had worked him out. He rarely took the roll, he didn’t care what happened in the class and he never set homework so therefore never had to mark any.
So as kids will do, all hell broke loose by week three.
Jeff would turn up to class, the days lesson in his hand, the kids sitting around, throwing paper, pens or whatever they could get their hands on. Jeff would ask politely for them to sit down, they would ignore him and often Jeff would give up and sit at the front of the class and read the paper.
By week 6 he was summoned to the Principal’s office who asked him about his classroom management and that three parents had complained their children were not being taught anything in his class.
Jeff protested that he was using the latest teaching techniques as imparted to him during teacher training. The Principal decided Jeff as a new teacher needed time to establish himself in the classroom.
By week 8 nothing much had changed except the kids were more out of control than ever and it became evident to all that Jeff’s method of discipline of roaring at the class in such a way that worried his colleagues in other classrooms fearing that he might have a heart attack at any stage and or worse harm some kid.
By week 10 such was the chaos that the kids in some classes were not bothering to turn up, some sat in the corridor, any suggestion of them sitting in their seats from Jeff was greeted by a few ‘fuck offs’ and Jeff in his established style sat back and did nothing.
Not once did he ask for help.
Not once did he make a change.
Never did he look at his colleagues and see them working long hours and always finding new ways to challenge their students. To Jeff, teachers were the epitome of misery.
By now not only were parents complaining but also the staff and students.
One student unfortunate to be in Jeff’s class fronted the Principal with an ultimatum that either Jeff go or she would.
The Principal was taken aback. He called in his Deputy and asked him to check on the classes Jeff was allegedly teaching.
Jeff’s Head Teacher was at his wits end as Jeff made it clear he wasn’t interested in any assistance as in his opinion he had everything under control.
It became clear that Jeff was not what one expected in a teacher.
By week 12 the Principal called Jeff in with the Deputy and Head Teacher to announce that Jeff had to lift his game or face being dismissed.
Jeff was amazed that it had come to this.
They decided to offer him a fresh start at another school.
It never occurred to Jeff to change his style.
He didn’t and his life at his new school turned to horror.
There were no discipline issues; this was a school where kids wanted to learn.
They demanded he do his job.
By week 2 most parents of most kids had complained.
By week 4 a meeting of all parents of all students in his classes was called.
By week 6 Jeff was out of a job.
The result was the realisation that teaching was not his forte. Disappointing as it was but he learned a rude lesson.
There was no such thing as an easy job, just the wrong person in the wrong job.
Written for: https://mindlovemiserysmenagerie.wordpress.com/2015/02/01/writing-prompt-92-unsuitable-employment-february-1-2015/
Morpethroad 